A PICTURE IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS, NO? Associate Editor Sawyer Hoff (left) and McKenna Scherer (right) serving scared, shook, and spooked at the Govin's Farm haunted trail.

Govin's Farm is a local favorite across the seasons for their family-friendly activities, and during the fall, their haunted trail is a continued staple for folks who enjoy getting spooked. Two of Volume One's editors braved the Twisted Tales of Horror in order to give Valley folks a look into what they can expect if they, too, feel daring enough to head out into the corn fields at Govin's...

Sawyer's Experience

Believe it or not, I was a wimp when I was a kid. I hated all things scary: haunted houses, horror movies, Willem Dafoe – you name it, I was terrified of it. As I've grown up, I've begun to change my way, which this fall included going into Govin's Twisted Tales of Horror trail with my good pals McKenna and Ma.

It was so much fun and I completely loved it, but on a very real note – it completely terrified me. I could quite literally feel myself reverting back into a child when I was scared to even round the corners of this maze.

My tactic to calming myself down in these situations is to talk myself through it, which means I basically narrated the whole event out loud to myself the entire way through (I apologize to not only McKenna and Ma, but to the countless actors in the maze who had to hear me ramble on as they waited to scare me). I had never been to Govin's Farm before this night and let me tell you, I will be back.

Before we had even entered the maze, one of the owners told us that he believed this was their best year of the trail yet, and I agree (since this was the only year I've done it). As scary as the whole thing was, the worst and most embarrassing part for me was not how I looked being scared (see photos and video below) but how I mixed up the names of famous fictional serial killers Jason, Michael, and the other one. Overall, I give the whole thing a 10/10, including the caramel apple slushie I got afterwards.

McKenna's Experience

I had never been through Govin's Farm's haunted trail before (embarassing, I know), and I will let the bats out of the bag now that I have: it was freakin' awesome. 

Every weekend in October the farm's Twisted Tales of Horror trail will be open for those who have the guts to wander in.

More than two acres of whispering corn fields await, and they twist and turn enough to live up to the name. The trail leads you through a winding path littered with people dressed up as staple Halloween horror characters, including Michael Myers, killer clowns, and more, plus themed buildings offering zombie scares, Area 51-themed frights, Saw props, and more. 

While we opted to go through the trail at sunset (totally not because we'd have been too scared during the dark), the trail was 100% worth the hype, and is sure to get screams out of you. By the end, Sawyer and I were sweating and our throats were a little raw from the jump-scare-induced shrieking – and I'd definitely go again. 

Tickets are $15 each, and the trail is open from 6-10pm on Oct. 7-8, 21-22, and 28-29. You can try to shake the scares out of you afterwards with apple cider, soft pretzels, donuts, and other snacks inside the farm's barn, and sit by the bonfire afterwards. Plus, the adorable farm dogs that wander around are so sweet and deserve all the head pats.

More of a visual person? Check out this snippet of Sawyer and McKenna's experience right before your eyes, thanks to support from Explore Menomonie and the spooks and scares at Govin's Farm:

Visit Govin's Farm's website for more information!